Bowe said her distinguishing feature was that she had a strong interest in serving consumers, and a conviction that markets could not be left to themselves to get on with the job. She added she will be going back to the key tenets of the Communications Act to assess if Ofcom is working in the interests of citizens and consumers.

It was Currie, a reserved economist and born-again New Labourite who, as first chairman of Ofcom, positioned the body as primarily an economic regulator – only to face huge premium-rate phone scandals and a mounting in-tray of complaints about standards.

Bowe said that during her five-year tenure she will focus on whether people with disabilities are benefiting from new media services, and that she will also be keeping a close eye on digital switchover.

In short, Bowe is continuing with her work as chair of Ofcom's independent advisory consumer panel, which helped frame the digital support scheme for vulnerable and elderly people, and highlighted that broadband had stalled at round 58% coverage. It was also Bowe who first raised questions over true broadband speeds, which led to Ofcom's investigation and report earlier this month.

While Bowe was being grilled, Ofcom's main board, of which she is a member, was agreeing its public service broadcasting recommendations for the government, published next Wednesday, January 21.

After initially saying she could not take questions on the issue, Bowe emerged as a flinty champion of children's television, which is, she said: "absolutely crucial, there is no question for debate. People value it; it is a fundamental part of the system and I am extraordinarily interested in it. I want whatever system that emerges to be one that can sustain really good quality children's television. It is at our peril that we let this strand diminish." Which is as clear as saying that there will have to be some new money pumped in.

She also agreed that Ofcom's lengthy jargon-packed consultations needed to change. The next day, the regulator's telecoms expert said its documents would be stripped of acronyms and written in language ordinary people can understand.

So, Bowe certainly stands for a change in tone. As for substance? We'll have to wait and see.